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Don't lockscreen shortcuts defeat the purpose of a lockscreen?

Seib

Seib

Newbie
I mean, maybe I'm missing something (I'm not exactly the world's leading expert on smartphone tech here), but in my understanding, the point of a lockscreen is to provide some level of security, i.e., for the most part, to prevent others from using the device. But having a "phone" or "text" or whatever else kind of shortcut allows the person to use that phone.

Am I missing something here, or do shortcuts like I said just defeat the purpose of the lockscreen?

Thanks. Just curious here.
 
I've thought that myself. Different strokes for different folks, I suppose.

On plain Android devices (Nexus, GPE), there are not lockscreen shortcuts, just lockscreen widgets. They're pretty convenient, but I've found that if you use more than one or two, it's easier to just unlock the phone and use an existing widget. I find it useful more more specialized things.

The same holds true for lockscreen shortcuts, I suppose. For those who want a busier home screen, the lock screen can be used for the individual's top 2-4 apps that need quick access (camera being a common culprit).
 
If a shortcut is clicked on, can only that app be used, or can the user then exit that app and gain full access to the phone without first unlocking it?
 
What phone are we talking about here? Because all of the phones I used, from Samsung, if you try to open from a lockscreen shortcut, it still asks for a code if you use a pin locked screen. So it's still secure. It just saves you the hassle of unlocking, finding the app, then clicking on it.

The only thing I could make work from the lockscreen is the camera, but you can only take pictures, not view the gallery, without entering the PIN. Good enough for taking quick shots.

For others, where the phone isn't secured with a PIN to begin with, it's moot point. Whether or not there are shortcuts, you can access the innards anytime.
 
chanchan05 said:
if you try to open from a lockscreen shortcut, it still asks for a code if you use a pin locked screen. So it's still secure. It just saves you the hassle of unlocking, finding the app, then clicking on it.
Click to expand...
This is how my phone works. I still have to enter the PIN. It goes straight into the app after the lock screen.
 
The only thing I have on my (WidgetLocker) lockscreen is my ICE widget. That bypasses the PIN and allows calls to be made only to those numbers. Nothing else can be accessed without the PIN.

I don't really see the need for anything else to be there honestly. That's just me and how I use my phone though :)
 
Oh, okay. I suppose, yeah, that makes sense to some degree for certain types of people.

Personally, I dislike it. I use a pattern lock, not a PIN lock, and I just prefer to quickly do that. Besides, if I put a shortcut on the lockscreen or a widget (I didn't know those were 2 different things. Lol.), I'd probably just as quickly forget it was a lockscreen thingy and think I'm in the phone. That'd get annoying quickly as I'd constantly have to unlock the phone anyway. XDD
 
i use voice commands from my lock screen, cleans the look up. the S-view case does anything i would otherwise use shortcuts for.
 
Seib said:
I mean, maybe I'm missing something (I'm not exactly the world's leading expert on smartphone tech here), but in my understanding, the point of a lockscreen is to provide some level of security, i.e., for the most part, to prevent others from using the device. But having a "phone" or "text" or whatever else kind of shortcut allows the person to use that phone.

Am I missing something here, or do shortcuts like I said just defeat the purpose of the lockscreen?

Thanks. Just curious here.
Click to expand...
The primary purpose of the lockscreen is to prevent accidental inputs in case the screen is accidentally turned on; the phone will not respond to inputs until/without deliberate action from the user. This is where lockscreen widgets and shortcuts come into play.

The lockscreen's secondary purpose is to provide optional security as has been discussed above.
 
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